1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a kits, methods, and compositions for enhancing the appearance of the lips. The invention contemplates cosmetic compositions for applying the color to the lips, compositions for enhancing the finish the finish of the cosmetic, color enhancing powders, and formulations for removing the color. Kits containing the above compositions are also contemplated. The present invention also relates to methods of using the preceding compositions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
For many years, lipstick has been utilized as a cosmetic preparation for heightening or altering the color of the lips. Conventional lipstick is formed by a cosmetic coloring in a wax carrier. Although lipstick has many disadvantages, there has thus far been no suitable alternative.
The lipsticks which have heretofore been available have the marked disadvantage of being readily transferable from a person's lips to other objects. Lipstick smears and rubs off while swimming, smoking, kissing, or by any other contact of the lips with articles such as coffee cups, tea cups, napkins and clothing. This leads to the loss of the lipstick application when drinking beverages, when swimming, and even when in engaging in none of these activities due simply to licking the lips. Thus, while lipstick is normally initially applied in a relatively even application across the externally exposed areas of the lips, the application of lipstick will readily dissipate and assumes a nonuniform coverage. The greatest loss of the lipstick application is typically near the portions of the lips closest to a person's mouth. As a consequence, it is necessary to frequently reapply layers of lipstick in order to maintain a uniform coverage of a lipstick application on a person's lips. This frequent necessity for reapplication aggravates a further disadvantage of conventional lipstick.
Lipstick has the additional disadvantage of being susceptible to cracking and caking. This disadvantage is particularly pronounced when several layers of lipstick have been applied to attempt to replenish a lipstick application that has been lost due to transfer to other articles. As a consequence, the frequent reapplication of lipstick results in perceptible cracking and caking of the lipstick covering a person's lips. Caking and cracking of a lipstick application detracts from the natural appearance of the lips and is aesthetically undesirable.
Attempts have been made over the years to provide alternative cosmetic which do not entail the disadvantages of lipstick. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,230,063 describes a liquid lip rouge preparation which employs a combination of ethyl cellulose and wax-free shellac as film-forming materials. However, shellac does tend to crack. Heretofore, no suitable alternative to lipstick has been found.